Harmony is a great name for this Universal Remote Control. Its main objective is to allow the user to eliminate all other remotes and solely use the 1100 as the single entity to direct multiple home theater devices needing orders at the same time. Logitech spares no modesty in its confidence to do just that, as the startup screen on the 1100 welcomes you with its boastful claim, “Finally, One Remote To Control Them All.”

And that it does. How well it does that is up to you.

The Harmony 1100 has a few tweaks that its predecessor, the 1000 model, arguably needed from the start. The overall consensus is that it is significantly faster, not only in touchscreen response time but also the IR transmission. It is also black instead of silver, a concept I think many purists still are boggled by to this day. Why anyone would want their receiver, DVD player, or remote to be distractingly silver with chrome accents is beyond my comprehension; but I digress.

The 1100 made its mark on this year's CES in Las Vegas by nabbing the CES 2009 Design and Engineering Award for the Best of Innovations in the Home-Entertainment Accessories category. Logitech received this same award last year for the Harmony One Remote. The 1100 is Logitech's vision of the happy medium between your basic consumer universal remote, and the thousand dollar custom remote systems that high-end enthusiasts commit to for their collection. It is an ideal crossover for computer savvies looking to spice up their multimedia life, and diy home theater gurus that appreciate what online and computer based software can do for seamless functionality. This remote control attempts to revolutionize the device management aspects of home theater by focusing on “Activities” instead of simply device control.

Technology

The Harmony 1100 is accompanied by a rechargeable Li-ion battery, a charging dock with AC adapter, a USB cable, a Quickstart Guide, a Features Guide, Technical Support documentation, warranty information and an install CD for the Logitech Harmony Remote Software.

The remote itself is clad with a 3.5-inch touch screen, an Activities button (basically your Home button) and 13 hard buttons that control basic functions like volume, channel and navigation. The design of the 1100 is great. It is a sleek black color with a slightly rubberized grip around most of it. It dons a polished piano black finish around the touchscreen, and a silver inlay surrounding the outside edge of the remote.

The 1100 gives users the option of controlling devices that are in a closet or behind closed doors with the optional RF Extender (unfortunately, sold separately). With the Extender unit you can use it as the IR blaster itself or connect the individual IR emitters which are then stuck to each unique device that needs controlling.

The software used for the 1100 is what makes this device truly shine. Allowing the user to plan out their device management on a computer screen with intuitive software really takes out a lot of tedious and frustrating moments that are usually inevitable with universal remote setup. But we will get into the software in a moment.